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DB_SEC_E_AUTH_FAILED
Meaning
Windows documents DB_SEC_E_AUTH_FAILED as “Authentication failed”. In this case, the provider attempts to authenticate the identity supplied for data-source initialization or connection establishment.
Conditions that specifically lead to the result
- Cause 1: credentials are incorrect, expired or revoked.
- Cause 2: the chosen authentication mechanism is unavailable or rejects the token.
- Cause 3: the account is valid elsewhere but not in the provider security domain.
Relevant contract
Authentication establishes the identity used by the OLE DB provider; authorization is evaluated later against data-source objects and data. Connection-string parsing, provider activation and account permission are separate stages and should not be collapsed into one login failure.
Investigation of this result should start with the data source object, effective credential source and provider authentication exchange.
Diagnostic sequence
- Identify the exact failing stage: the provider attempts to authenticate the identity supplied for data-source initialization or connection establishment.
Evidence to collect
When recording diagnostic data involving passwords, tokens, certificates and account identifiers, use types, lengths, hashes or redacted identifiers rather than secrets or complete business data.
- Evidence 1: provider name and authentication mechanism without secret material.
- Evidence 2: effective account or certificate identity.
- Evidence 3: native provider error records and server authentication logs.
Corrective actions
- Action 1: obtain fresh credentials through the intended identity flow.
- Action 2: verify clock, domain and certificate prerequisites for the mechanism.
- Action 3: separate credential failure from later object-level authorization checks.
Practical scenario
A service keeps an expired access token in a connection pool; refreshing the token before creating a new data source resolves authentication.
Retry and recovery
Retry rule: retry only after credentials, token state or authentication infrastructure has changed.
Difference from nearby HRESULT values
DB_SEC_E_PERMISSIONDENIED means an authenticated identity lacks permission, while DB_SEC_E_AUTH_FAILED means identity establishment failed.
Official Microsoft references
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